• A sweet story of being the “perfect match” for each other to share with you now. Husband and wife Henry and Jessica Briggs sat down with us on Good Things Utah this morning to share their kidney donor story. Henry says he knew that he had a chronic kidney disease since he was about six years old. He was born with a mutated gene closely related to Dent’s Disease. The disease caused a number of problems, some with his legs and growth but the majority to do with his kidneys.
    • As Henry grew up, his condition worsened. When he came home from an LDS mission he was below 20% kidney function. That’s when he started the process to find a donor. None of his siblings were able to donate and he had some friends apply but none of them were matches. That’s when Henry decided to post it on his Instagram to see if there could be any potential donors. He had about 45 people apply to donate, some he knew, some were complete strangers. The doctors then tested people to see who would be the best match. During this last year of tests, his kidneys started getting worse. The side effects and symptoms started showing more and more. Henry now is sitting at 14% kidney function. Most people start dialysis around this time.
      • Then in the month of February he got the call that his wife Jessica was the best possible match and doctors wanted her to come in for further testing. She got all of her scans and tests back and was super healthy. Henry and Jessica both felt it was a good decision to move forward with her, his wife, as his donor. She recently had her final tests and the transplant is scheduled to take place Tuesday, April 4th. Both say they are scared and nervous but so grateful to have been able to find each other. They just got married in August of 2022. Jessie says she feels emotional about this lifesaving gift, and is ready to help her husband. The couple encourages everyone who can be an organ donor to register and see if you can help.